Rumor Control—-Not R

Despite what may or may not be quoted from an off-handed remark by one of the New Moon actors, Eclipse will not be rated R. It was a condition of the movies being made that they would NOT be rated more than a PG-13. Stephenie Meyer would not allow them to do an R version because she does not see R-movies. If for some reason it was rated R by the MPAA it would have to be re-cut to change that.

In fact, during our set visit and our conversation with producer Wyck Godfrey we were talking how if they made Breaking Dawn (which we are dying along with the rest of you for some sort of official word…but we digress…)how they would go about keeping scenes within PG-13 bounds. The romance scenes are easy enough to shoot that way since the book “fades to black”, as for the other scenes think about network shows like ER and how much they were able to show on primetime TV and still be real:

“Q: Have you discussed that, storyboarded it[Breaking Dawn]? Wyck: No, well, since it exists as a book and it’s a part of the series, all of our minds individually think “How will we do that?”…

My wife is an OBGYN, so I know it can be done in a PG-13 way. I’ll bring her on as an expert. (Laughs) (Did you like it?) I loved it. I mean for me, it’s mature in a way that speaks, you know, to someone my age really. Gosh, I mean I have three kids, you totally understand the next level of Bella’s life is going to be the adult life.

What was so daring about Breaking Dawn, and so brilliant about it, she didn’t pander what she thought her audience was. She said, this is what’s right for Bella and Edward, and this is where their story needs to go. I really loved that about it.

Certainly there are things that are shocking that are like, I never thought it would go that way. That’s good! I mean, that’s what makes for good drama. So I love it. I don’t know how we are going to do it! (Laughs)”

Comments

I understand that they want to keep it PG-13 but the audience is growing and there is a way to make it tastefully rated R. There is the simplicity of how it was written but then there’s the place where our minds took us and that’s the visual that most want to see.

I believe the writer can and will have the final say in how her movie is created. I think it is a wise to keep it clean considering the following of young fans. I also admire stephanie for standing up for what she believes in along with millions of other Mormons..go steph!!!!!

I had a feeling that Stephenie would not approve of an R rating for any of her movies because one of my friends is Mormon and their religion is not supposed to watch anything beyond PG-13. I remember being in high school and my friend would have to leave class because we were going to be watching an R rated movie. Unfortunately for us fans we probably won’t get to see Breaking Dawn at its full potential, because there are some details that might be left out. They probably won’t be able to show the huge and important birth scene because it’ll be too much gore to show on screen. I wonder if Stephenie thought about that when she was writing Breaking Dawn, but then again I’m sure she never expected it to be made into a movie. I’ve always said that if you can read the details in the book then you can see it on screen, whether you’re a child or an adult.

Ohhh just make it R. Parents should not have let their 13 year olds read the book if they cared about the sexual content. If someone can read the book, then they can watch it in a movie too JUST HOW IT WAS WRITTEN.

I don’t know, I read “Forever” when I was about 12. It’s hard to keep your kids out of a book they really, really want to read. (Yes, it was taken once my father realized I had it but at that point I’d read it twice!)

OK, OK…I understand Stephenie Meyer’s wishes. But the way the movies are rated now. They would have to take away or tone down a lot of scenes in Eclipse and Breaking Dawn. And that would just be no good. However, Eclipse has already been filmed, lets see what they bring.

Congratulations, Chris Weitz did a fantastic job with New Moon!! I love the couple of changes, it fits.

i agree!!! breaking dawn was written rated r, so the movie should be too. Plus, stephine is a pretty lame for not seeing rated r movies, i understand shes a mormon, but shes also a grown adult who should be able to handel it. and if she doesnt like rated r stuff then why would she write BD that way? lingerie, broken headboards, ripped pillows, and babies eating their way out of a mothers womb, hmmm sounds pretty rated r to me…im sure all the mormons support BD (i hope the sarcasm translates in the last line lol)

Sorry but it pushed it but wasn’t over. R would have been seeing how in real time the headboard was broken, not just the aftermath.

R would have been blow by blow of seeing exactly how Renesmee was born and Edward facilitated it, not what Jacob described eliminating specific details. That’s the difference between a PG-13 and an R.

R is over in True Blood, Black Dagger Brotherhood, Anne Rice. Not saying there is anything wrong with those stories, just using them as an illustration of where the PG-13/R line in the sand is. You can get a lot by pushing the envelope, it doesn’t mean you have to cross the line. On the gore angle, A good example is the LoTR movies which had some pretty gross battle scenes but stayed PG-13. Another good example is the last three seasons of ER. As far as the romance angle, you can get pretty steamy and stay PG-13, it’s just the matter of exactly how much is revealed.

Yeah the birth scene is definately R rated in my book. How can you take all the details given to us in the birth scene and put them on the screen without all the blood and gore. Jacob describes when Edward clawed into Bella to get Renesmee out. You can’t exactly show that on the screen and it would most likely get cut because it wouldn’t be PG-13.

I think if they stick to the descriptions in the books it shouldn’t need to be rated R. Personally, I think any explicit sexual actions (thrusting, etc….not that that is in the books) makes a movie go from entertaining and artistic to just voyueristic porn. I don’t want to see Bella/Edward or Kristen/rob having simulated sex!

I agree with the R rating, but “it is what it is.” Stephenie will not allow more than PG-13 and we all have to deal with that. Nothing we do or say will change that. I think if Grey’s, Gossip Girl and even Lipstick Jungle (when it was being aired) could get away with all those steamy scenes on TV, then there’s a good chance we can still get the passion we’re all dying to see. It’s the bloody birth scene and Renesmee that I’m truly worried about!

I think they should make a movie that is true to the book, just like they’ve done with the other three. If the book was written in a way that an R-rating is required, then they should make it R-rated. I understand that this is impossible, but it’s annoying that BD has to be made on the terms of the younger audience. In my opinion the book shouldn’t be read before you’ve turned 15 anyway. I was shocked to see about 9-year-old girls in the New Moon screening, maybe, if BD was rated R, that young people wouldn’t get in. Of course, that would have an effect on the box-office.

Stephenie didn’t write explicit, detailed, sex scenes in Breaking Dawn, so I don’t see how some would think it should be an R rated movie. She wrote tastefully, the movie should also be tastefully done. The book is in an young adult category, so to make a movie that they technically couldn’t see would be a shame. So I am glad to back up the creator of the books, and am glad that she won’t sign a contract to make an R rated movie.

It is a stand that Stephanie Meyer has made, she has never watched a R rated movie, it’s her books so why should she lower her standards? I love how she said that they would have to make all the movies PG13 because she “wants to watch them”. There is a tasteful way to show certain scenes in BD and I have faith in the the directors and screen writers to do that. Just my 5 cents 😉

I totally agree, BD did seem rated R to me and not just because of the sensuality, even when it wasn’t explicit, there are other scenes in there that seemed R to me. Yet, now a days there are sex scenes in PG-13 movies, their just cut down a bit on intensity. So, they can make it PG-13, but I’d prefer it rated R as it seemed. Also, it would decrease the squealing in the theaters. Yet, then again it would affect the box office. I mean Stephenie Meyer herself said that the book shouldn’t be read by anyone younger than 15 or 16. I guess she hadn’t realized at the time she had written a foundation for a Rated R movie, but alas whether it’s PG-13 or Rated R, I’ll see it if they make it. Yet Please, don’t make it too innocent so it can fit with the younger audience, b/c if it’s anything it’s definitely not innocent. Those who have read it know this.

See, I live in the Uk and I hope I am right in thinking that R means a Cert 15 here. Eclispe is not R material, but some scenes in BD are, I think. come on, the vampbaby ripping itselfs out of its mother?! Not something I would like to see anyone as young as 9 seeing – and there defenitly were children that young in my screening of New Moon. I am 16 years old myself, and I started reading Twilight a year ago and personally I don’t think anyone younger than…let’s say 14 should be reading this Saga. In the movie world, they might want to make BD darker and more mature and delve into the sexual scenes more than Stephanie has written. Saying that, if the movie didn’t allow younger children to go see it the Box Office numbers would decrease and I think that is something Summit would have to consider. I understand Stephenie’s point of view but I think BD should be a slightly darker film than the previous ones just due to the content. Also, I like a bit of sex and gore – I blame True Blood for that!

AHH TRUE BLOOD SO funny!!!I always watch that naughty show..I dont think that poor rob/kstew would even go that far ….Honestly i dont care what they rate it, i cant wait to see bella in that dress and that crazy baby..

No worries! There will NOT be an R rated Twilight saga movie Breaking Dawn will be made to where you have to use your imagination on some scenes. It will be just as good as the rest if not better. She has does not watch R rated movies nor do I and it has alot to do with our spiritual beliefs you cannot fault her for that.

I kinda hope that the way the movie gets edited, it pushes its boundaries and gets really close to an R rating in the States that it can without going overboard. I mean, there was a scene in the 6th HP movie that had it rated PG13 in the States, but was reedited to make the movie PG there. I just don’t want to fork out money to this movie if it gets lower then a PG13 rating in the States because Summit wants to draw in the little 9 and 10 year olds.

Look, I can handle the editing out of the passion in 3 darn movies. People who haven’t read the books and only seen the movies do not understand how badly they want one another. Yet, part of the draw of the two characters is that they desire one another– it makes them relatable.

I have been saying for a year now “I can’t WAIT until Esme’s Isle!.” If they edit it to make it suitable to an audience that shouldn’t be watching it in the first place, they will do a huge disservice– both to the novels and to the fans who have made them millions.

It’s a rated-R book. Plain and simple. If you’re such a devout Mormon, don’t write the material in the first place. If you are, let it’s artistic translation to screen be proper instead of hindering it.

I don’t understand why everyone is acting like a rated R movie is somehow better than a PG-13 one. How does that make sense? Is the movie somehow more artistic if the content is more explicit? Is the acting or cinematography better? Are you really such a snob that you don’t want the younger teen fans to be able to see the movie? And don’t start telling me they ‘can’t handle it.’ I think that’s just ridiculous.

So many movies are rated R currently, and I think it’s really ridiculous. It makes it hard for parents to find a safe movie for their kids to see. And people like me, who don’t really want to see detailed sex scenes or overly-gruesome violence, don’t appreciate it much either. Sometimes it’s better if a little is left to the imagination.

Hi Kitty. It’s not that an R-rating is so great itself, it’s that it’s the rating most appropriate to the book. And it’s not an issue of the sex scenes, it’s an issue of the gore. Bella and Renesmee both drink blood out of a cup. Bella’s ribs and spine are broken, and she has an unrealistically distended abdomen. Bella’s baby is broken out of her uterus by Edward’s teeth; said baby then bites her mother’s breast. This is disturbing stuff. I can’t imagine how they’re going to sugarcoat it. And I’m not sure why they’d bother making the movie if they feel that they need to.

I guess we can agree to disagree. I just don’t think all of that warrants an R rating. Definitely PG-13, but do you really think only adults over 17 can handle Breaking Dawn? It’s not really that bad. I would say it’s disturbing, yes, but an R rating would effectively ban 14 and 15 year olds (who I would argue are definitely mature enough) from seeing the movie.

Not only would this be a stupid business move on Summit’s part, but I don’t think it’s necessary. They can have the “gore” without showing every detail.

I definately side with vampbball on this issue. The movie will have to be toned down a lot and most of the birth scene will be cut around just to get a PG-13 rating. There is no way that they can take the bloody details of the birth and translate it exact onto screen without an R rating. Anyone who says otherwise needs to go back and read that part of the story because its really gory. Its pretty disappointing that the story can be written by Stephenie, yet with its proper rating she wouldn’t be able to watch it on screen.

I’m sure in her eyes it doesn’t transfer to rated R material, but for the MPAA it would. If they left in the birth scene exactly as it was in the book I’m positive it wouldn’t be approved for a PG-13 rating.

I just want 2 clear sumthin up I am not doing this 2 dis on SM religion or her choice towards how she wants the movie made it’s her baby I just think if that cut 2 much out there is going 2 be no movie 2 even work with.

Breaking Dawn is mature theme, definitely not PG…perhaps they could do PG13. I don’t need to see detailed sex scenes but I have been disappointed in the way they have showed the relationship between Bella and Edward so far, especially in New Moon. They have this passionate love but it isn’t present in the movie. When Bella and Edward get back from Italy, Edward is willing and wanting to give Bella more of himself – laying in bed together, extremely close and passionate kissing. Didn’t happen. I went with a friend who did not read the Twilight saga and her response was that she couldn’t see why Bella loved Edward. Half the time, Edward wasn’t even looking at Bella…yes, he’s tortured but this is overdoing it. Stick with the story. Nine year olds shouldn’t be reading the saga and I certainly don’t want the rest of the movies being catered to them.

Whoa! I cannot believe all the negative comments aimed at Stephenie Meyer! Not to mention the criticisms of her religion! Sheesh! It’s her baby. Let her tend it as she sees fit. If it’s graphic sex and violence people want, there are a whole lot of films out there with that in abundance. I’m certain whoever directs the film will do just fine. It’s more what is suggested than what is spelled out in detail, leaving nothing to the imagination, that is most powerful after all. And let’s leave religion out of it, shall we?

Nicely said. This is Stephenie’s story, and ultimately it is her decision. Giving the movie an R rating would effectively cut out a major part of the movie’s audience. A PG-13 rating will still allow for scenes similar to the book, but without going into extreme graphic detail. Breaking Dawn left a lot to the imagination, and the movie should do so as well. Most people over the age of 13 are able to handle the content in the book, and in he movie as well.

What I found interesting the most about this type of debate is who determines what is right or wrong or too much? I leave no fault to SM about her work, it is her work. I had so many more issues about the very graphic and gory birth scene than I did with a sex scene. This is one thing that I have always had issues with BD…..why is it okay to have Edward bite through Bella’s uterus, but we can’t really talk about how Renesmee was made in the first place? How absurd!

I think it would only be appropriate to have the film rated R, but I highly doubt that will happen and we will end up with a PG-13 rating. C’est la vie!

Just do the movie by the book. Some babies are born by intent and many are born by accident. Some women have natural childbirth and some women have cesarean birth externally,with extra help from the doctor. This one is just an internal cesarearn, without the extra help from a doctor. They are married, what is so “R” rated about it? Having a baby is a natural part of life and it is messy and it does get cleaned up. It is just part of the movie. I can’t comprehend very many 9-year-olds being able to read the books let alone understand them, a 12-year-old maybe. This has more to do with that very uncomfortable conversation about “where do babies come from and the birds and the bees topic than an “R” rated movie and this is a conversation that watching this movie could generate for parents reluctant to discuss such topics, if it is changed to an “R” rated movie, this would let parents off the hook so to speak. Oh come on parents, you know you have to have that talk sooner or later and this is fiction! It is not meant to encourage your children to have sex, and I would think the birth scene would really have a negative impact on premarital sex, nor is it sexually explicit even in the books. PG-13 should be okay even with the birth scene. I saw Twilight in Thailand and then in Malaysia and it was censored in Malaysia, where several scenes (huggy bear kissy face is discouraged anywhere there let alone the bedroom scene) were removed completely.

I also have to add to my previous post as far as rated R. I would never bash ones religion or the choices they make in that religion. She wrote them PG, they are read as PG-13 and made into movies as PG-13, yet her fans- the ones who made this so popular- want more. Rated R is more accepted now than ever. It’s not we’re asking BD to be made NC-17 which is FAR worse than R. Atleast R parents can judge if they want their kids to see it. She needs to bend a little or her followers will turn their backs.

Breaking Dawn was totally R! I mean she wrote the scene where Bella walks down the beach to Edward in the water completely nude. Not to mention the lingerie and the “intimate” scenes that all of us older readers are just dying to see played out on the silver screen. And how are they just going to gloss over the birth scene?

Truthfully, I don’t really care if the movie is done in R or PG-13. I care about the movies relating to the books. So far, they’ve left a lot out of the movies that were in the books. Like Bella’s sickness when she smells blood. They missed key points in how Bella and Edward feel about each other and it shows clearly when you listen to the responses from people who actually read the books and people who just watched the movies. I’ve read all the books and I believe that you can do the honeymoon and the birth scene in PG-13. Remember, Bella shows you her point of view right after Jacob’s section gets done in the book. They might do Bella’s version to limit the “gore” or Edward biting through her uterus. Bella’s version is PG-13 and if you don’t remember that, then you should read the book again. After all, they’ll most likely flash the scene in and out like as if you were in Bella’s point of view. It is ridiculous to see younger kids watching the movies. My bf has a 7 and 4 year old and I’m almost 21 with one on the way. I wouldn’t let them hear, let alone watch the movies. They’re too young. Some parents may allow it and that’s fine. It’s their parental right. Even if they did the movie in R, which they’re not going to, don’t you think the little 8 and 9 year olds would have someone they knew over 18 or their parents take them to see it? Regardless of what the rating is, kids are still going to see it. The “R” rating just stops them from going in by themselves. Also, Stephanie is a great writer and why should you talk bad about her or her religion? If it wasn’t for her the books and the movies wouldn’t be here, so maybe everyone should just stop acting like a 2 year old and grow up. You should be appreciative that she wrote books and allowed the movies. If you’re not happy with the rating of the movie or how she wants things done, then don’t watch the movie BD or read the books. Go find something else to complain about.

I like ur response lol & I agree with U on the child thing 2 I have a 10 year old & I probaly wont be letting her c the movie until she is older. I just think they need 2 be sticking more 2 the book then they R

If she has so much of a problem with thinking of people watching these kinds of scene’s. Answer me this why would she write them in such detail I think that’s worse I mean U can not even keep 2 young of people buying a book yet ur going 2 put in there atleast in a R movie U have 2 be a certain age or have permission 2 c it she’s going 2 ruin her own movie.

Thanks Crystal…lol. I’m just tired of hearing people complain about this. I do agree with you about how they’re not sticking to the book, but it’s not even that, it’s how much information they’ve left out that really shows the storyline and what really drew people to the books in the first place. The problem with books is that you get to know what the person is thinking and know what is unspoken between the characters. This is just like the Harry Potter Series. I didn’t read all of them, but I knew people who did, and there were things they did that was similar to the changes they made with the Twilight Saga.

When you write a book, you don’t expect it to turn into a movie. Writing a book takes a lot of time and effort and there is always that 50/50 chance that it could flop or be very successful. It just happened that her books were successful. Well there are some books that you have to be a certain age to read. There are porn books and things out there and you have to have ID to even buy it. Obviously the publishing company didn’t think it was too graphic or where it should be age limited. She used her creativity and wrote what she felt. She may be a Mormon, but that doesn’t mean she can’t use her imagination to write what she wants. I also don’t believe she wrote the books for the younger generation or thought about who her audience could end up being. I think she thought it was going to hit the more mature audience, not 15 and under.

Maybe I’m missing something, but I don’t recall anything that to me would constitute a R rating for Eclipse, maybe a hot and heavy snogging scene and Bella trying to get herself naked? They have already left a lot of the kissing scenes out of the movies so I’m not expecting to see to much of that in the next movies anyway. BD is definitely far more R, but I see it as a natural progression, Stephenie keep everything pretty tame intimacy-wise till they are a happily married couple (to me a very good thing to be putting out to our youth, keeping it wholesome and “no ding ding without the wedding ring”) I just hope we get a glimpse of the part where she walks out to meet him in the ocean, but that’s just me wanting to see more half naked Robert (I can see the scene in my mind too, B walks out wrapped in towel, sees E – pause to appreciate him- then we see just her hand as she hangs up the towel, fade into the towel and then fade out on the feather strewn bedroom… leave the rest up to those old enough to imagine the rest and let the youngsters think that had a wild pillow fight after their swim 😉 Apologies for the next part, totally off the R rated topic, but I just have to add that I can live with less in BD as long as the dog bowl scene is in, I love that part!